The company has entered into a memorandum of understanding for acquiring the stake in the Belgian company along with its subsidiaries, including Dafra Pharma Ltd (Dafra), it informed the Stock Exchanges.
"This acquisition is a great strategic initiative and will leverage the company's TB franchise with the WHO or global fund. Lupin's R&D will be able to add considerable value and move pipeline projects faster to the market," Lupin chairman D B Gupta said.
Lupin said it planned to jointly develop new anti-malaria therapies for use by World Health Organisation and Roll Back Malaria along with Dafra, which is an anti-malarial company providing a complete basket of Artemisinin based Combination Therapies.
The acquisition will provide Lupin access to the existing infrastructure and distribution network of Dafra in Africa to market its range of products, it said, adding that Dafra's ACT basket included a paediatric suspension and holds a patent on a new combination therapy that cures the disease in 24 hours.
